1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a machine for depilating animals and it is applied more particularly to the external treatment of the skin of previously boned ungulate animals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Until now machines carrying out an identical operation are known, such as that described in French Certificate of Addition No. 2,112,689, for "Device for skinning panses and washing vegetables". The latter is constituted by an upwardly open vat for introducing the previously heated pieces to be skinned and by a perforated horizontal plate, arranged in the lower part of the vat and driven on a central pivot by suitable rotating means. The interior of the vat has bosses freely distributed over its inner wall and on the top of the rotary plate. These bosses are for the purpose of stirring a mixture of feet and/or heads of hoofed animals already scalded and of scraper elements constituted essentially by the hoofs of these animals and this, under permanent sprinkling with very hot water. Thus, the adherence of the hair diminishing under the effect of the heat, the hoofs tear off the hair from the skin which is driven by the flow of hot water to the recovery tanks.
However, such a machine has certain drawbacks. The bodies to be skinned must necessarily have good rigidity to enable the scraping of the hoofs on the hair of the hide which, obviously, considerably spoils the yield of the machine since the bony tissue occupies a predominant place in the trotters and the heads of hoofed animals. The yield of the machine is also restricted by the presence of the scraper elements. In addition, when the epilation is finished, it is necessary to sort out the scraper elements and the treated parts for the purposes of the particular uses of each.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a machine which overcomes these drawbacks.
It is another object of the invention to provide a machine which does not use either scraper elements nor the rigidity of the pieces to be skinned.
It is a further object to provide a machine which fulfils the function of scalding.